Meet the 2013-14 Canton Charge

Friday

Nov 22, 2013 at 12:39 AM

Meet the 2013-14 Canton Charge

By Josh WeirRepository sports writer

No. 4 Gilbert BrownPOSITION Wing HEIGHT 6-6WEIGHT 215 AGE 26COLLEGE PittsburghHOMETOWN Harrisburg, Pa.HOW ACQUIRED DraftHIS GAME Athletic, versatile wing player. ... Can defend multiple positions. ... Solid scorer and rebounder. ... Natural leader.PRO EXPERIENCE Played 19 games with Fort Wayne during the 2011-12 season, averaging 12.2 points 4.0 rebounds. ... Has played internationally in Germany, Dominican Republic, Turkey and Venezuela, and also played in Puerto Rico.COLLEGE DAYS Scored 1,046 points at Pitt. ... His 129 career games played ranked 10th in school history. ... Played in 12 career NCAA Tournament games, helping the Panthers reach the Sweet 16 twice and the Elite Eight once.THIS AND THAT Was in training camp with the Boston Celtics in 2011. ... College teammate of Charge’s Tyrell Biggs. ... Advanced to the final round of the ESPN Slam Dunk contest after senior year at Pitt. ... Was a teammate of Wizards forward Andray Blatche at South Kent Prep (Conn.). ... Charge selected him with a first-round pick (14th overall).

No. 9 Re’mon NelsonPOSITION Point guard HEIGHT 5-9WEIGHT 175 AGE 23COLLEGE South Carolina AikenHOMETOWN Canal WinchesterHOW ACQUIRED Open tryoutHIS GAME Strong, explosive athlete. ... Quick. ... Good ball-handler who can collapse a defense. ... Pesky defender.PRO EXPERIENCE NoneCOLLEGE DAYS Played four years at NCAA Division II Aiken. ... Averaged 13.9 points, 6.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals last season as a senior to be named Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year. ... Aiken’s career leader in steals and assists.THIS AND THAT Childhood friend and high school teammate of former Ohio State center Byron Mullens, who now plays for the Los Angeles Clippers. ... Played first three years of high school ball at Harvest Prep before playing at Canal Winchester as a senior.

No. 13 Antoine AgudioPOSITION Shooting guard HEIGHT 6-3WEIGHT 200 AGE 28COLLEGE HofstraHOMETOWN Huntington Station, N.Y.HOW ACQUIRED Returning playerHIS GAME Veteran player with high basketball IQ. … Deadly shooter. … Not athletic, but crafty driver and rarely out of position on defense.PRO EXPERIENCE Beginning his third season with Charge and fifth overall in D-League. … Has international experience in Belgium and Turkey. … Career 12.8 point-a-game scorer in 169 D-League games. … Has averaged 17.1 points in nine career playoff games with Charge.COLLEGE DAYS Broke Hofstra’s 43-year-old scoring record with 2,276 points. Also school’s career 3-point leader with 357. … Led Hofstra to three straight postseason NIT bids.THIS AND THAT Led the D-League in 3-point shooting at 53.9 percent during 2011-12 season. … One of 25 players named to the Colonial Athletic Association’s 25th Anniversary Team in 2009. … Averaged 24.9 points as a senior at Walt Whitman High School and named first team All-New York state.

No. 14 Zane JohnsonPOSITION Shooting guard HEIGHT 6-6WEIGHT 210 AGE 24COLLEGE Arizona/HawaiiHOMETOWN PhoenixHOW ACQUIRED DraftHIS GAME Big-time shooter. ... Good scoring touch. ... Wing player with good size and length.PRO EXPERIENCE Played last season in Spain and Japan.COLLEGE DAYS Played two years at Arizona, helping the Wildcats to Sweet 16 as a sophomore in 2008-09. ... Transferred to Hawaii, where he set school records for single-season and career 3-pointers. ... Averaged 15.8 points as a junior and 14.0 points as a senior.THIS AND THAT Made 29 straight free throws during a stretch of the 2011-12 season. ... Charge drafted him with a second-round pick (31st overall).

No. 15 Jorge GutierrezPOSITION Point guard HEIGHT 6-3WEIGHT 195 AGE 24COLLEGE CaliforniaHOMETOWN Chihuahua, MexicoHOW ACQUIRED Returning playerHIS GAME Quiet person, but ferocious competitor. … Good feel. ... Tenacious defender. … Struggles to shoot from perimeter.PRO EXPERIENCE Averaged 10.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.7 assists last year with Charge. Did not miss a game. … Earned first-team honors on the D-League’s all-defensive and all-rookie teams. ... Played briefly in Mexico before coming to Canton.COLLEGE DAYS The 2012 Pac-12 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, the first player in league history to win both in same season. Averaged 13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists.THIS AND THAT Was in training camp with the Brooklyn Nets. … In September, helped Mexican national team win its first FIBA Americas continental championship. … Played on the summer league teams for the Denver Nuggets in 2012 and the Golden State Warriors this year. … Second Cal player along with Kevin Johnson to total 1,000 points, 400 assists and 400 rebounds.

No. 21 Kevin JonesPOSITION Forward HEIGHT 6-8WEIGHT 260 AGE 24COLLEGE West VirginiaHOMETOWN Mount Vernon, N.Y.HOW ACQUIRED Returning playerHIS GAME Good jump shooter. … Not explosive athlete, but agile and active with great hands. … Good touch around rim. … Plays hungry.PRO EXPERIENCE Played 12 games with the Charge last year after going undrafted, averaging 22.4 points and 11.2 rebounds. ... Played in 32 games with the Cavaliers, averaging 3.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in 10.4 minutes a night.COLLEGE DAYS Second team All-American and runner-up for Big East Player of the Year as a senior at WVU when he averaged 19.9 points and 10.9 rebounds.THIS AND THAT He and Jerry West are only two players in Mountaineer history with 1,800 points and 1,000 rebounds. … A Parade All-American in high school, Jones led Mount Vernon to consecutive New York state championships.

No. 22 Robert HitePOSITION Shooting guard HEIGHT 6-2WEIGHT 184 AGE 29COLLEGE Miami (Fla.)HOMETOWN CincinnatiHOW ACQUIRED TradeHIS GAME Earned the nickname “Flight” for his jumping ability. Still possesses good explosion. ... Good shooter, defender and veteran leader.PRO EXPERIENCE Played in 12 games with the Miami Heat as an undrafted free agent in 2006, averaging 4.3 points in 11.3 minutes a night. ... Has averaged 11.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 45 career D-League games. ... Has played internationally in Turkey, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Israel and France.COLLEGE DAYS Career averages of 14.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 steals at Miami. ... Third-team All-ACC as a senior after averaging 16.4 points and 5.8 rebounds. ... Left Hurricanes with 1,717 points, the seventh most in program history.THIS AND THAT Was Ohio’s 2002 Co-Division I Player of the Year as a high school senior. Scored 27 points to lead Winton Woods to a state semifinal win against McKinley. ... Acquired by Charge for a second-round pick (27th overall) from the Iowa Energy, who drafted former Washington Huskies guard Abdul Gabby with the pick.

No. 23 Bo SpencerPOSITION Point guard HEIGHT 6-1WEIGHT 190 AGE 24COLLEGE LSU/NebraskaHOMETOWN Baton Rouge, La.HOW ACQUIRED DraftHIS GAME Aggressive point guard. ... Streaky shooter but can score in bunches. … Good ball-handler with quickness.PRO EXPERIENCE Played in Italy last season, averaging 13.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 30 games. … Shot 82.9 percent from the foul line.COLLEGE DAYS Played three seasons at LSU before transferring to Nebraska because of an academic issue. … Averaged 14.5 points his junior year at LSU. … Averaged 15.4 points and 3.3 assists in his only season (2011-12) at Nebraska.THIS AND THAT Helped his high school team, Glen Oaks in Baton Rouge, to two state titles. … Selected by Charge in first round (13th overall).

No. 24 Rashad AndersonPOSITION Wing HEIGHT 6-5WEIGHT 225 AGE 30COLLEGE UConnHOMETOWN Lakeland, Fla.HOW ACQUIRED TradeHIS GAME Dangerous shooter. … Nicknamed “The Dagger” by college coach Jim Calhoun for ability to hit big shots. … Good size at wing position. … Effective as starter or off bench.PRO EXPERIENCE Since going undrafted in 2006, has played internationally in Greece, Italy, Latvia, Iran, Lebanon and Venezuela. … Has 24 games of D-League experience, averaging 11.5 points and 3.2 rebounds and shooting 38.1 percent from 3-point line.COLLEGE DAYS Helped UConn to 2004 national championship as a sophomore, earning Final Four All-Tournament Team status. Averaged 17.3 points during tournament run. … UConn’s career leader in 3s with 276.THIS AND THAT Suffered skin abscess during junior season at UConn and nearly died because of infection. Spent 13 nights in hospital. … Was a high school All-American and led the Kathleen Red Devils to a state title his junior year. ... Drafted by the Texas Legends in the second round, then traded to the Charge along with a 2014 third-round draft pick for Micheal Eric and a 2014 fourth-round pick.

No. 32 Tyrell BiggsPOSITION Forward HEIGHT 6-8WEIGHT 240 AGE 27COLLEGE PittsburghHOMETOWN Nanuet, N.Y.HOW ACQUIRED Returning playerHIS GAME Good jump shooter and pick-and-pop big man. … Not explosive leaper, but good quickness and strength.PRO EXPERIENCE Played in 38 games during the Charge’s inaugural season of 2011-12, averaging 12.9 points and 5.1 rebounds. Was selected a D-League All-Star. ... Has also played internationally in Greece, Israel, Cyprus and Lithuania.COLLEGE DAYS Averaged 6.4 points and 4.3 rebounds as a Pitt senior. ... A glue guy who played alongside DeJuan Blair, Sam Young and Levance Fields. ... A four-year letterman who played in 141 career games.THIS AND THAT Married former Cyprus national team player Sonya Papadopoulou in September, a day before surgery to repair meniscus damage in his knee. ... Was a college teammate of Charge’s Gilbert Brown. ... Rated the No. 33 recruit in the nation by The Sporting News coming out of Don Bosco Prep (N.J.). ... Was 6-5, 230 pounds as an eighth grader. ... Was Charge’s first first-round draft pick, selected 15th overall in 2011. ... Participated in Cavs lockout-shortened training camp of 2011.

No. 33 Shane EdwardsPOSITION Forward HEIGHT 6-7WEIGHT 220 AGE 26COLLEGE Arkansas-Little RockHOMETOWN Gilbert, Ariz.HOW ACQUIRED Returning playerHIS GAME Energy, effort player. ... Good athlete who can provide some shot blocking. ... Can score inside and out.PRO EXPERIENCE Has played two full seasons in the D-League and part of another. … Was a D-League All-Star in 2010-11 when he averaged 16.7 points and 6.8 rebounds for New Mexico. … Played in five games with the Charge in 2012 before an ankle injury ended his season. … Career 57.5 percent field goal shooter in D-League. … Has international experience in Italy and Australia.COLLEGE DAYS Spent two years at Northeastern Junior College before moving on to Arkansas-Little Rock, where he averaged 11.8 points and 5.4 rebounds as a senior to earn first team All-Sun Belt.THIS AND THAT Was in the Denver Nuggets training camp in 2010. … Spent two seasons with the New Mexico franchise, which became the Charge when it was moved to Canton.

No. 34 Michael LeePOSITION Forward HEIGHT 6-9WEIGHT 215 AGE 27COLLEGE St. BonaventureHOMETOWN Tallahasee, Fla.HOW ACQUIRED Affiliate playerHIS GAME Thin, athletic big man with hops. … A stretch 4, shoots it well. ... Charge’s longest player.PRO EXPERIENCE Since going undrafted in 2008, has played in France, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia and the Ukraine. … Led the Adriatic League in scoring in 2011. … Led BC Donetsk to the 2012 Ukrainian SuperLeague championship.COLLEGE DAYS Averaged 17.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals as a senior with the Bonnies in 2007-08.THIS AND THAT Was in training camp with the Cavs. Played in three preseason games. … Participated on the 2012 Sacramento Kings summer league team with former Charge players Josh Akognon and Dominique Johnson and former Cavalier Darnell Jackson.